This August marks 100 years since Elizabeth Andres, mother to Buddy Andres and his 11 siblings, arrived in Canada from South Russia, present-day Ukraine. A century later, Andres honoured his parents’ sacrifice with a gathering of 140 family members.

The first of the Andres family came to Canada in 1926. Eight years later, they settled on Niven Road in Niagara-on-the-Lake and grew up running the farm, skating on the pond and making memories Andres says he remembers fondly.

“We have grown up in a family of 12 on a farm. The memories we have of growing up on Niven Road … just incredible,” he said.

The pressure to immigrate came not long after the Russian Revolution in 1917, which overthrew the Russian monarchy and gave rise to communism.

But the family’s decision to leave did not come easily.

Although Andres’ mother and grandmother, Maria, were able to immigrate in 1926, his father could not because he was in the military, making the move all the more difficult.

“Grandmother wanted to keep going, and (my mother) wanted to go back, and she had made up her mind that she was going to go back,” Margie Enns, another child of Elizabeth and William Andres, said. “When the officials came and told her, ‘You’re ready to travel,’ she said, ‘Where to?’ and he said, ‘Canada.’”

Luckily for the family, William Andres Sr. arrived in Canada four years later in 1930.

“It was that close that she could have gone back, and we wouldn’t have seen this,” Enns said, while pointing to 139 relatives enjoying a picnic, laughing and exchanging stories.

Andres says the family’s Mennonite roots instilled an honest, hardworking farming lifestyle that was brought over to Niagara-on-the-Lake.

“My dad was a tough taskmaster, kind of like me. My mom, oh my goodness … there’s 12 in our family and we all had different appetites. My mom would make 12 different dishes,” he said.

But a generational knack for farming didn’t mean he and his siblings wouldn’t have a fun-filled childhood.

“Our place was kind of the hub because everybody’s friends would come there,” Enns said. “My dad built a great big pond on Niven Road … there wasn’t a (skating) arena, so everybody came there.”

When summer rolled around, Enns, Andres and their siblings helped on the farm, apart from the occasional trip to Crystal Beach to cool off. Meanwhile, Saturdays were for baking zwieback buns to eat at Sunday dinner, pronounced zwee-back in English.

“On Sundays, first of all the older people would eat, then the next generation and then the kids,” she explained.

More than anything, though, Elizabeth and William’s children were raised with the belief that family comes first.

That message lives on through their descendants, including 13-year-old Tayla Andres, Elizabeth and William’s great-great-granddaughter. She chose to recount her ancestors’ immigration story for a Grade 7 school project.

“I thought it would be something cool to learn about my family history,” she said. “Most people learned about something that they weren’t really a part of and it doesn’t really matter to them, but this is actually important to me.”

Tayla conducted her research by speaking to her dad and grandparents. She says she was particularly interested in how her great-great-grandparents arrived in Canada and why they left Russia.

“It’s really important (to) learn where you came from and what generations before you did to help you get to where you are now,” she said.

Last weekend’s gathering at Virgil Sports Park did just that: Remember the sacrifices made so generations today can tell the story.

Through heirlooms — documents, dolls, photographs and dishes — and shared stories, Elizabeth and William’s journey was honoured at the celebration.

“We feel very blessed that they came here to a place like Canada. There’s a lot more stories I know of people who didn’t come and what happened to them, it’s horrific,” Enns said.

Six of Elizabeth and William’s 12 children, including Buddy and Margie, are alive and living in NOTL, a hundred years after the family arrived in town.

Other family members travelled from Ottawa, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Buddy joked the only excuse for missing the 100th anniversary of the family’s arrival to Canada is death.

“When my mom and dad were still alive, we would get together for Christmas, all of us. Usually in our home, but then in the church gymnasium,” he said. “Ever since then the family’s been getting too big, but we’re all still very closely connected.”

Seeing the large group of relatives gathered together, Enns says her parents would be impressed to see what their journey ultimately led to.

“We thought this was important for the next generation to know the story about our parents coming here,” she said. “The story needs to be passed down.”